Non-bailable offence
Topic: Justice Delivery: Subordinate Courts, Tribunals, Legal Aid and Judicial Reforms · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
A non-bailable offence is a crime where the accused has no automatic right to bail. Bail means release from custody before or during trial on a bond, which is a promise to come back to court. For these offences, the court decides whether to grant bail. It weighs how serious the charge is and whether the accused may run away. Today the rule sits in Section 480 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) 2023. Courts still follow the idea that "bail is the rule, jail the exception" (Balchand, 1977).
Example
A person charged with murder cannot demand bail as a right. They must apply to the court. The judge then considers the gravity of the crime and the risk of flight before deciding.
Don't confuse with
- Bailable offence: here bail is a right, and the police or court must grant it (BNSS s.478). In a non-bailable offence, bail depends on the court's choice.
- Default bail: this is a right to bail when the police fail to file a charge sheet within 60 or 90 days. It applies even in non-bailable offences.
Related concepts
- Bail
- Bailable offence
- Anticipatory bail
- Default bail
- Satender Kumar Antil case
- Plea bargaining
- Undertrial prisoner
- Maximum detention of undertrials
- Model Prisons and Correctional Services Act 2023